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Petition for fresh inquiry into Kanishka flight bombing lands in Canadian Parliament
It was presented in the House of Commons by Liberal MP Sukh Dhaliwal.
Canadian Parliament. / iStock photo
A public petition signed by 4,238 Canadians demanding a fresh inquiry into the Air India (Kanishka) bombing of 1985 was finally presented in the House of Commons by Liberal MP Sukh Dhaliwal.
The petition initiated by Gurpreet Singh from Delta in British Columbia has gone around Canada since August this year for endorsement by those who support the demand for a fresh probe into one of the worst air disasters.
Canadian Parliament has a unique protocol of taking up petitions from its citizens on issues of wider public interest. Members of Parliament present such petitions received from their constituents to seek action or intervention by the government through its House of Commons.
Sukh Dhaliwal, who represents Newton riding in British Columbia while presenting the petition, said that it has more than 4,200 signatures of Canadians, 2,313 of them came from British Columbia alone, followed by 1,088 from Ontario, 432 from Alberta, 100 each from Manitoba and Quebec, 32 from Saskatchewan, 10 from Brunswick, 20 from Nova Scotia, six from Prince Edward Islands, and one each from Yukon, Nunavut, and NW Territories.
The signatories in their petition to the House of Commons say that the Air India bombings of June 23, 1985, that left 331 people dead was the worst tragedy in the history of aviation terror before 9/11. It further says that the victims’ families continue to wait for justice and closure.
“The Sikhs in Canada widely believe that this was the handiwork of foreign intelligence to discredit their political activism and undermine their advocacy work for human rights in India. The recent developments within the Sikh community in British Columbia give credence to this perception. The Canadian government is looking into growing foreign interference in its political affairs. The Sikhs have been living under fear since the murder of Surrey Delta Gurdwara President Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June 2023; and on September 18, 2023, the Prime Minister of Canada stated that there are credible allegations of a link between agents of the Government of India and the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
“We, citizens and permanent residents of Canada call upon the Government of Canada to order a fresh inquiry into the Air India episode to determine whether any foreign intelligence was involved in the crime,” the petition said.
It may be pertinent to mention that Chandra Arya, also a member of the ruling Liberal caucus, had opposed the petition saying that the “Kanishka tragedy was the handiwork of pro-Khalistan elements” as he highlighted the reaction of some of the next of kin of the victims in his mention on the floor of the House some weeks ago.
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